Birthday Cakes

Birthday Cakes
Jim Palmer is 65 today. How is this happening? If he's 65, that means we're all growing older, and that's not possible. I didn't sign any papers allowing it. I'll hire a Dream Team of lawyers and fight it in court. They can't do this to us. I'll always feel a certain connection to "Cakes" because he pitched in the first game I ever attended with my father at Memorial Stadium. Home games were rarely televised, so seeing the Orioles in their crisp white uniforms made my eyes bulge...
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Quick AFL update

Quick AFL update
Reliever Kam Mickolio allowed one hit, threw a wild pitch and struck out two batters in one inning for the Scottsdale Scorpions of the Arizona Fall League. Twelve of his 16 pitches were strikes. The Scorpions are trailing the Phoenix Desert Dogs, 2-0, in the sixth inning. Xavier Avery and Greg Miclat are a combined 0-for-5. More important, I wonder what Phoenix's mascot would look like if the team was known as the Dessert Dogs. Mickolio was touted as a future closer back in spring...
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A little housekeeping

A little housekeeping
The most important item first: Longtime umpires attendant Ernie Tyler remains hospitalized at the University of Maryland Medical Center after undergoing successful surgery on Oct. 6 to remove a benign brain tumor, but a team official tells me that doctors are pleased with his progress. We still don't know when they'll allow Tyler to return home, but his continued improvement is encouraging news. According to Bodog, the odds of the Phillies winning the World Series stand at 5/4. The...
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Deciding which free agents to keep

Deciding which free agents to keep
When manager Buck Showalter was asked late in the season about his timetable for announcing which coaches would return in 2011, he said it would be "sooner rather than later." It's my fault for not getting a clear definition. This week would be considered "sooner," as opposed to after the World Series, which would fall into the "later" category. Showalter underwent the first of his two knee surgeries on Tuesday. He was supposed to return to Baltimore before the second procedure. Just...
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Quick AFL update (updated)

Quick AFL update (updated)
Since nothing else seems to be happening today... First baseman Tyler Townsend and third baseman Ryan Adams have two-run singles today for the Scottsdale Scorpions of the Arizona Fall League. The Scorpions lead the Peoria Saguaros, 7-0, in the sixth inning. Townsend and Adams singled off right-hander Jeremy Hall, who went 6-9 with a 3.52 ERA in 27 starts for the Double-A Montgomery Biscuits - yes, I want to see the mascot - of the Southern League. The Biscuits are a Tampa Bay...
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Orioles are interested in Nakajima

Orioles are interested in Nakajima
I was fully prepared to drop an Office Space line on you and call this entry "Naka...Naka...Not gonna play in Baltimore." But I won't go quite that far. Plus, I'm not sure how many of you would get the reference. If you do, you earn some serious cool points. We'll hang out. A few readers asked about the Orioles' potential interest in Japanese shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima, 28, who could be posted, as they say, by the Seibu Lions. Here's what I know: The Orioles have interest in him,...
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A second look at second base

A second look at second base
The Rays managed to bring the Division Series back to Tropicana Field tonight for Game 5 after falling behind, 0-2, to the Rangers. That's the good news. David Price is 0-2 with a 7.45 ERA in four career starts against the Rangers, allowing 16 runs and 17 hits, and walking 15, in 19 1/3 innings. That would be the bad news. Cliff Lee has a 2.87 ERA in 13 career starts against the Rays. Yeah, you guessed it. They don't play the games on paper - though they've been known to play them...
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MacPhail: "It's truly in Buck's hands..."

MacPhail: "It's truly in Buck's hands..."
President of baseball operations Andy MacPhail doesn't believe that an announcement on the coaching staff is "on the horizon," but he adds that it's "truly in Buck's hands, what he does and the circumstances." We're waiting for the Orioles to soon reveal which coaches are returning, without naming replacements for the departed. "There are so many managerial positions to be filled that it has a ripple effect on the staff," MacPhail said. Hitting coach Terry Crowley will return,...
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A scout's take - Part III

A scout's take - Part III
So, does anyone want to trade places with Brooks Conrad? The Atlanta second baseman committed three errors yesterday, the final one allowing the go-ahead run to score in the ninth inning and putting the Braves within a game of elimination. "I wish I could just dig a hole," Conrad said, "and sleep in it." I'm sure a few of his teammates would bring the shovel. Maybe I just expect too much in the postseason from a player named Brooks. Aubrey Huff delivered a huge hit in the ninth, tying...
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A scout's take - Part II

A scout's take - Part II
A scout from outside the organization who ventured inside Camden Yards over the final weeks of the season made the following observation about Adam Jones, including differences in the center fielder since manager Buck Showalter took control of the club: "I think the biggest guy that I've seen impacted is Jones. I thought in the middle of the season that he was at a crossroads for me, whether he was going to go one way or the other. I think he's really stepped up. "He's got the most...
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A scout's take

A scout's take
I'll be heading to M&T Bank Stadium in a few minutes to shed my sportswriter inhibitions and behave like a fan. That means sitting in the stands, yelling my lungs out and hitting the concessions. And yes, standing in line at the urinals, rocking back and forth from one foot to the other, wishing the guy in front of me hadn't downed 12 beers before deciding to break the seal. It isn't all fun and games. I'll check the blog later, of course, but you'll have to forgive me for straying...
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Talking free agents and spring training

Talking free agents and spring training
With word spreading through baseball that Cliff Lee will seek CC Sabathia money this winter, it becomes even less likely that the Orioles will make a run at him. And it was a long shot coming out of the gates. We already know that the corner infield spots will garner the most attention, which sounds vaguely familiar. Didn't we do this same dance last winter? At least we can eliminate Garrett Atkins and Miguel Tejada from the discussion. And I won't be fooled again by Joe Crede, who didn't...
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This, that and the other

This, that and the other
The most shocking development in the playoffs for me, and I'm probably not alone, has to be the Rangers 2-0 lead over the Rays as the Division Series heads to Arlington. How strange that two managers had never been ejected on the same day in the postseason until Joe Maddon and Ron Gardenhire were tossed yesterday. Watching Matt Treanor behind the plate for the Rangers yesterday reminds me that the Orioles made a strong push for him at the Winter Meetings two years ago, but he rejected them....
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Coaches remain on hold (updated)

Coaches remain on hold (updated)
It's been another relatively slow day, and I'm not complaining. I'm fine with the current pace after finishing up spring training and a 162-game season. It's not dead around here, but you have to feel around for a pulse. I called a few of the coaches to gauge whether they have a handle on their fates, and the universal answer is "no." They remain in a holding pattern and are still waiting to hear back from manager Buck Showalter, who flew home earlier this week. Showalter wasn't...
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Are Orioles showing an ace with Guthrie?

Are Orioles showing an ace with Guthrie?
Roy Halladay throws a no-hitter last night and I saw exactly four pitches - all of them from Cincinnati's Edinson Volquez in the second inning. I have regrets. Not every team is blessed with a true No. 1 starter. Go over all the rosters and pick out the pitchers who actually fit the description, and not simply because somebody had to take the ball on Opening Day (Rodrigo Lopez did it in Baltimore and nobody's calling him an ace.) The Phillies happen to own three of them, but that's an...
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Tyler undergoes surgery: "Everything went well"

Tyler undergoes surgery: "Everything went well"
Ernie Tyler, the longtime umpires attendant who was rushed to University of Maryland Medical Center Saturday afternoon, underwent successful surgery this morning to remove a benign brain tumor. A team official said "everything went well" and Tyler is resting comfortably. No word on how long he'll remain hospitalized. Tyler, a member of the Orioles' Hall of Fame, worked 3,819 consecutive home games at Memorial Stadium and Camden Yards. It's not often that an umpires attendant achieves...
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Waiting for word on the coaching staff

Waiting for word on the coaching staff
If I appear to be typing more slowly this morning, it's because I'm feeling a little dizzy. I struck out at a bar last night and hit myself over the head with a beer bottle. We're still waiting to find out which coaches, if any, will return in 2011. Each one has met with manager Buck Showalter within the past week. "It's emotional for me," Showalter said. "You care. I'm just trying to be honest and sincere and paint a picture of what the timeframe is and what we're...
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Brian Roberts non-update

Brian Roberts non-update
It's my understanding that second baseman Brian Roberts hasn't undergone a CT scan, and the club hasn't scheduled one at this time. Roberts has complained of headaches and dizziness since Sept. 27 in St. Petersburg, when he slammed his helmet with his bat after striking out in the ninth inning. He missed the last six games, but his condition must be improving. Manager Buck Showalter spoke yesterday with head athletic trainer Richie Bancells. "That was a possibility that they were going...
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Four players choose free agency

Four players choose free agency
Four Orioles minor leaguers have elected to become free agents: Infielder Scott Moore, first baseman Michael Aubrey and pitchers Cla Meredith and Alberto Castillo. Moore batted .209 with three homers and 10 RBIs in 41 games with the Orioles. Meredith, acquired from the Padres in the Oscar Salazar trade, went 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA in 21 games. Castillo was 1-0 with a 10.13 ERA in 14 appearances. Aubrey never made it to Baltimore this season. He batted .235 with 22 homers and 68 RBIs in 102 games...
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Biggest surprise and disappointment in 2010

Biggest surprise and disappointment in 2010
Well, it's not raining this morning, but I woke up with the covers pulled over my head. I refuse to turn on the heat. It's not happening in the first week of October. Meanwhile, my daughter sleeps with her ceiling fan on full-blast. Says it has to be "freezing" in her room. Apparently, it also has to be noisy, because the television stays on all night. She's back in school today. Thanks for all the well-wishes and medical advice. Taking New England -1 last night worked out well for me,...
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